DialAFlight’s top 5 New Year’s travel resolutions

While a New Year’s resolution usually involves some sort of torturous exercise regime or a self-sacrificial diet or detox plan, starting the New Year with a brand-new goal, plan or desire for improvement doesn't have to mean eschewing your favourite tipple or chocolate bar. Incidentally it could even mean enjoying more of these things if you're clever about what you want to achieve. And if one of the things you wanted to do more of in 2013 was travel, this could be a very nice resolution to work at next year!

Holidays in 2013 were all about experiential travel, learning about new places or honing a new skill, eating your way round a country and of course, getting all this with value for money. However, if you didn't get much further than Bognor or Brighton this year then make 2014 the year of exploration. Instead of ditching wine, learn all about how to savour it (rather than drown in it) on a wine tour of New Zealand, California or Europe. Instead of denying yourself chocolate and cakes, go on a gourmet skiing holiday and indulge in copious amounts of rich French and Swiss cuisine before burning it all off skiing.

As for self-development, the world is your oyster and offers a much more inspiring setting for learning a new skill. Learn a language such as Spanish in South America or French in (French speaking) Canada, learn how to cook authentic South East Asian dishes in Vietnam, Cambodia or Thailand, learn how to dive in the phenomenal waters off Australia's Great Barrier Reef or learn how to kite-surf or water ski in the Caribbean.

If your objective for 2014 is to chill out more, spend more time with your partner or family or simply read that book you've been meaning to get stuck in to since last Christmas, taking a holiday is the best way to make sure all of these things get done! And, if your secret goal is really to squeeze into 'those jeans', there are loads of holiday resorts offering detox programmes, yoga, healthy options at mealtimes and endless infinity pools to get those daily laps in. Or you can just leave the jeans at home and live in your kaftan for two weeks instead!